An Advent prayer card created by students at Notre Dame Academy.

Prayer is one of the most important things a Christian can do. It is a way of communicating with God. Prayer does not have to be complicated or difficult. It can be as easy as a conversation with a good friend.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, there are many forms of prayer including: prayer of blessing or adoration, prayer of petition, prayer of intercession, prayer of thanksgiving, and prayer of praise.

Here at South Buffalo Catholic Notre Dame Academy, prayer is a daily occurrence. Recently our teachers have asked their students to create prayers around the upcoming holidays. "Prayer is important because it gives the students the chance to open up their hearts and talk to God," comments, Colleen Balen, a third-grade teacher at Notre Dame Academy.

It's wonderful to be able to incorporate prayer into the classroom," states Lisa Balzer, another third-grade teacher at Notre Dame Academy.  "While learning about the history of Veterans' Day, my students created a wall of stars displaying family and friends who served and made cards for local veterans. They were also excited to honor our veterans through prayer."

"As we move quickly into the holiday season, I am happy to be able to talk to my students about the importance of prayer," says Amanda Destro, a fifth-grade teacher at Notre Dame Academy. "It's very easy for all of us to get caught up in what society thinks is important: presents, parties, pastries. So, it's nice to take time, slow down and teach, really teach our students about prayer. This year both fifth grade classes came together to write a prayer for Thanksgiving and it was good experience for everyone."

A few other holiday prayers the students at Notre Dame Academy are working on are: Advent, Christmas, New Years, Valentine's Day, Easter, Mother's Day and Father's Day. The busyness of the holidays is right around the corner, but a prayer is always within us and can combat the most hurried of days.  So, look to prayer and our students to be grounded in faith, hope and love this holiday season.

All the prayers the students have written, along with videos and pictures of all the happenings at this school can be found on Notre Dame Academy's Facebook page.

For more information regarding South Buffalo Catholic School Notre Dame Academy call 716-824-0726. Be sure to  "like" us on Facebook. There you will find all the prayers the students have written, video and pictures of all the happenings at this school.